Beef and stout HOTPOT

My Irish friend Jamie once begged me to drink a pint of Irish Stout with him at his farewell party as he was moving back to Ireland. It was complete torture, as I simply couldn’t handle the strong taste. BUT, give me Guinness in a stew and I’m happy as Larry (or Jamie in this case).

SERVES 4

60ml oil1.5kg beef shinsalt and pepper60ml cake flour200g baby onions, peeled and quartered4 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks6 cloves garlic, peeled2.5ml chilli flakes30ml tomato paste2 sprigs rosemary4 sprigs thyme2 bay leaves1 x 10g beef stock pot750ml dark stout beer4 potatoes, sliced30ml unsalted butter

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.2. Heat the oil in a cast-iron casserole or any oven-proof pot.3. Season the beef generously with salt and pepper, then dust

with the flour. Brown the meat in batches in the hot oil then remove from the pot and set aside. Add the onions, carrots and garlic to the pot, and cook until all have softened. Stir in the chilli flakes, tomato paste, rosemary, thyme and bay leaves, and cook for a minute. Return the meat to the pot; pour in the stock pot and stout, then bring to the boil.

4. Layer the potatoes on top in an overlapping fashion. Check the seasoning, dot with the butter, cover the pot (with a lid or aluminium foil) and bake in the oven for 1 hour, or until the meat is tender. Uncover, then return to the oven for another 20 minutes until the potatoes have browned.

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